VALENTINE’S DAY (Saint Valentine’s Day) is celebrated on February 14 by many people almost throughout the world these days.

In the West, it is a traditional day and a holiday, on which lovers express their love for each other by exchanging cards, flowers, sweets and confectionary. Of late, the day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of ‘Valentines’.

The websites inform numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine. It is said that until 1969, the Catholic Church formally recognised eleven Valentine’s Days. The Valentines honored on February 14 are Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni.

It is also believed that no romantic elements were present in the original early medieval biographies of either of these martyrs. Later on, Saint Valentine became linked to romance in the fourteenth century, distinctions between Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni got lost.

Yet another story informs that the day originates from the story of St. Valentine, who upon rejection by his lover was so heartbroken that he took a knife to his chest and sent her his still-beating heart as a token of his undying love for her. Hence, heart-shaped cards are now sent as a tribute to his overwhelming passion and suffering.

Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline, doves, and the figure of the winged cupids. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards.

It was in 1847 that Esther Howland developed a successful business in her Worcester, Massachusetts home with hand-made Valentine cards based on British models. The popularity of Valentine cards in 19th-century America was a beginning of the future commercialisation of holidays in the United States and in other countries.

The Origin of Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day has been celebrated as a romantic holiday since the 14th century, although mid-February has been a traditional time to celebrate love and fertility for much longer. The exact origins of Valentine's Day are actually somewhat unclear, and the situation is made more complicated by the fact that there are no less than three Saint Valentines, none of whom can be easily associated with love. The most accepted explanation for the origins of Valentine's Day is that it has its roots in pagan fertility festivals, which often took place at the close of winter.

In ancient times, many cultures celebrated a fertility festival in mid-February. In Rome, the festival came to be known as Lupercalia, and it included festive parades through the streets with an assortment of pagan symbols. During Lupercalia, men and women would draw tokens with random names on each of them to pair off for games and exchanges of gifts.
The Christian church frowned on the pagan and erotic nature of Lupercalia, and tried to institute a more staid festival to celebrate St. Valentine, although since all three Valentines were martyred on 14 February, it's unclear which one was meant to be celebrated. The practice of instituting a Saint's Day on a popular pagan holiday was quite common, so that converts could celebrate their new faith on traditional festival days. The question of which St. Valentine is meant to be celebrated cannot be resolved. One of the men cured the sick, another was imprisoned and tortured for his Christian beliefs, and the history of the third Saint Valentine is not known. Some scholars suspect that the first two are actually the same man, and in later years the myth that St. Valentine secretly married couples who were ineligible for matrimony was added.

Citizens were not terribly enthused about celebrating yet another Saint's Day, and Valentine's Day began to evolve into a celebration of love and marriage. The tradition of exchanging cards and tokens was continued, and during the height of courtly love, people began to select their own Valentine's mates. Couples exchanged Valentine's cards and gifts with each other, and Valentine's Day began to appear frequently in love poetry. The first written link of Valentine's Day and love was provided by Chaucer, who wrote a love poem to commemorate the engagement of Richard II and Anne of Bohemia which linked the pairing off of birds with the royal engagement and Valentine's Day.

The elaborate exchanges of poetry, cards, and gifts on Valentine's Day cemented it as a holiday for the celebration of love in European popular culture. Valentine's Day has since spread all over the world, and many nations celebrate love on the 14th of February with flowers, gifts, and cards. It is one of the largest selling days for greeting card companies, as most lovers no longer make their own cards. In nations such as India where relationships between unmarried men and women are not encouraged, lovers often celebrate Valentine's Day secretly with stealthy meetings and gift exchanges.

The History of Valentine's Day
Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine's Day — and its patron saint — is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite? Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred.
One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men — his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.



Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.
According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl — who may have been his jailor's daughter — who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.
While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death or burial — which probably occurred around 270 A.D — others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to 'christianize' celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.



To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at the sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification.
The boys then sliced the goat's hide into strips, dipped them in the sacrificial blood and took to the streets, gently slapping both women and fields of crops with the goathide strips. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed being touched with the hides because it was believed the strips would make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city's bachelors would then each choose a name out of the urn and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage. Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine's Day around 498 A.D. The Roman 'lottery' system for romantic pairing was deemed un-Christian and outlawed. Later, during the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds' mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February — Valentine's Day — should be a day for romance. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. The greeting, which was written in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.
In Great Britain, Valentine's Day began to be popularly celebrated around the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century, it was common for friends and lovers in all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes. By the end of the century, printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine's Day greetings. Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began to sell the first mass-produced valentines in America.
According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)
Approximately 85 percent of all valentines are purchased by women. In addition to the United States, Valentine's Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia.
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine's didn't begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap".

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What is Puppy Love??
Pop singer Paul Anka and a very young Donny Osmond each had a hit with a song dedicated to the phenomenon known as puppy love. In the song "Puppy Love," the singer denies accusations that his relationship with a young girl is little more than an adolescent crush. He insists their mutual feelings of love run deeper than a mere infatuation. This is the essence of puppy love, an early foray into the world of romantic relationships, often defined by immaturity and un-reciprocated emotions

Puppy love may indeed feel like its deeper emotional cousin called "true love," but it usually has a fleeting quality which keeps it from developing any further than a serious crush. Puppy love often starts with a one-sided infatuation, perhaps for a seemingly unapproachable classmate or an attractive teacher or other authority figure. For the smitten one, these feelings of attraction may be very intense indeed, and create the sort of distractions and obsessive thought patterns of true love.

Some young people gripped by puppy love will eventually make an effort to pursue a relationship with the object of their affection, with varying degrees of success. Occasionally two people with similar afflictions will embark on a short adolescent romance with little to no expectations of a long-term commitment. Others may lack the social confidence to approach the object of their affections, keeping their feelings at the level of an unrequited crush.

Puppy love rarely reaches a level of concern for parents, although they may become concerned if their child's budding romance begins to interfere with their other obligations and basic needs. A young adolescent experiencing puppy love for the first time may become easily distracted or less focused on other matters such as eating, sleeping and schoolwork. The inevitable break-up of a puppy love relationship may also create deep emotions which a young teen may not be prepared to handle. Parents should respect the fact that a puppy love relationship can feel very real indeed to the participants, and often mimics the same stages as a more mature romantic relationship.

The concept of a youthful infatuation or immature adolescent romance can be traced back for centuries. During the time of Shakespeare, the idea of puppy love was often rendered as calf love, with the same basic premise of an immature romantic crush. In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is reminded of his former "calf love," a girl named Rosaline. Romeo's budding relationship with Juliet could be construed as a transition from a fleeting puppy love into a true, if tragic, romance for the ages.

What does "Falling in Love" Mean?
Falling in love may be a common expression in much of the Western world but it isn’t used much elsewhere. The phrase may be connected to the idea of "falling head over heels," which was used in the 1300s, and is another term for being struck suddenly by great romantic attraction to someone else. Even with this connection, it can be hard to get a beat on what falling in love means, or what it feels like. Each person may define this experience somewhat differently
Generally, when a person falls in love they have heightened romantic interest in someone else, and this doesn’t necessarily have to occur at first sight. Many people are friends first and find over time their feelings change to those more romantic in nature. They might want more from a relationship than just friendship and they may cherish more than friendly feelings for the person with whom they’ve fallen in love.

The word fall suggests that there’s a certain helplessness about these feelings of attraction, and they’re not necessarily within the control of the person stricken suddenly with great affection. It is true that people can’t always determine who or what attracts them, but they don’t have to be helpless in this regard. People can make choices about whether to act on romantic feelings. However, for those experiencing falling in love for the first few times, the feelings can seems so powerful that there seems little choice but to act upon them. Some people have challenges maturing out of this impulse, which can make forming lasting romantic relationships very difficult.

It would be hard to dispute that initial feelings of attraction and the “falling in love” state are powerful. For centuries, writers and poets have sung both the agonies and joys of discovering passionate feelings for someone else. Chaucer called this early “love” state the “dredful joye” representing both the pitfalls and ecstasy. Infatuation and romantic interest especially at the onset of a relationship can be both painful and exciting.

People have verifiable physiological reactions when in this early love state. A sight of the object of their affection may cause the pulse to race and the body to sweat. Certain neurotransmitters in the brain tend to be produced in greater volume, which can promote happiness and some anxiety. Yet most social scientists would agree that the reaction is not entirely a chemical one and involves the thinking brain and the emotions on numerous levels.
Another point on which most psychologists would agree is that falling in love is most certainly not the same as maintaining a sustained love relationship. Falling in love tends to be easy, but remaining in love with a person can be difficult. The rush of feelings accompanied with the flush of early love make it hard to judge exactly how viable a relationship might be in the future. For this reason, it’s not recommended that people make quick decisions or lifelong commitments while in this early stage. Getting to know someone after the roller coaster ride of falling in love with him or her may be a fantastic way to determine if the initial fall into love leads to lasting love

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What is the Difference Between Infatuation and Love?

It can be sometimes be difficult to tell the difference between infatuation and love. This is especially true at the beginning of a relationship. It is easy to think that you have found true love as the intensity of infatuation takes over your life. Love, however, rarely comes on suddenly. It is a slow, gradual process that can only happen after the rush of infatuation starts to ebb.

Infatuation describes the intense range of feelings present at the beginning of most relationships; sweaty palms, rapidly beating heart, butterflies in the stomach. The world is a better, more beautiful place because object of your affection is with you. Every time you touch is thrilling, you remember every conversation, and your thoughts revolve around them. In more common terms, this is a crush. Crushes are a very real, normal part of human life. Everyone experiences at least one crush at some point or another in their lives.

Infatuation is caused by a chemical reaction in the body. The hormones released accounts for some of the feelings of elation. In truth, you are "high" on dopamine. This is an important evolutionary response to meeting a potential future mate. These hormones assure that two people will spend enough time together to possibly produce children, thus ensuring the survival of the species.

Love, on the other hand, is a calmer, more mature feeling. It is a sense of stability. Love is still exciting, at times. It can change day-to-day. Love takes work. The feelings are not supported by the highs of hormones, but by a shared love and respect for each other. Love is what exists after infatuation fades, if you are lucky.

Infatuation and love are different in many ways. While both result in pleasant feelings, the feeling of infatuation is more intense than the feeling of love. Love may not be as intense, but it is usually a much deeper emotion. Relationships that start as infatuation can mature into love.

One of the biggest differences between infatuation and love is how long each can last for. Infatuation can last, at most, several months before it starts to fade. Love, on the other hand, is capable of lasting fifty years or more, if both people in the relationship work for it. Infatuation is almost effortless. Anything put into the relationship is because you want to. Everything you do for the other person brings great pleasure for you, too. This isn’t always the case in love. You do things that you don’t want to do, things that you will get no pleasure from, because it is the fair thing to do. Love is about compromise.

Infatuation and love are both different in the amount of unpleasant tension that is part of the relationship some days. Infatuation discourages any real disagreements from taking place. You both are on your best behavior during all the time you spend together. Anything that could cause a discrepancy to the idea of a perfect relationship is avoided. Everything is perfect, and no one wants to mess that up.

Love allows people to be who they really are. While arguments aren’t encouraged, they happen. Sometimes they happen a lot, especially in times of stress. Love is admitting that your partner has faults, and so do you, but that is okay. You have realistic expectations of each other. Love is accepting.

Infatuation and love are two separate emotions, and there are many differences between them. They are, however, similar in some ways. Infatuation is like a shiny new pair of dress shoes, where as love is the comfy old sneakers you’ve had for years. Infatuation is fun, while it lasts. Eventually, though, the night out ends, and you slip into the sneakers that fit perfectly, even if they are starting to give at the seams and the tread is worn out. This is what happens in relationships. As the brilliance of infatuation fades, couples move into a contented place where, even if there are problems, they know they can depend on one another to provide the love and support they need. That is the difference between infatuation and love.

Why Do They Say You Love from the Heart?

For many modern people, it’s difficult to understand why you would love from the heart, when we are taught from early childhood that the brain is where our essence seems to reside. There are a few reasons why it makes sense to love from the heart, both historical and practical.

As with many of our common beliefs, a better understanding of why we love from the heart requires looking far back in history to our ancestors in Ancient Greece. They believed that the heart was the seat of everything, in much the same way we believe our brain is the seat of everything about us. Aristotle taught that the heart controlled all reason, our emotion, and even our day to day thoughts. So for an ancient Greek like Aristotle, it would only make sense to love from the heart. Loving from the brain for him would have felt much like loving from the kidneys might to us.

From Aristotle, the teaching of the heart as the place of our emotions passed on the Romans. The physician Galen, who laid the groundwork for a great deal of later medicine in the West, had an entire theory of a circulatory system. In this theory, the heart was said to be where emotions took place, while rational thought took place in the brain, and passions originated in the liver.

The Egyptians also placed a great deal of importance on the heart as an organ, and many of them likely would also have understood what it was to love from the heart. In Egyptian mythology, the heart was said to contain some vital essence of the soul, such that at death it was weighed against a feather to decide if a person would go on to paradise.

We have been taught so strongly that the brain is where everything about us takes place, that it’s difficult to imagine, in a literal sense, love from the heart. But when we think about it, most of our emotions are associated with our other organs in common speech. We get butterflies in our stomach when we’re nervous, feel a sense of something in our gut, and deep pain wrenches our hearts from our breasts. This all makes sense, if you look a bit more deeply at physiological responses to emotion, and the fact that we feel them most acutely in organs other than our brains.

Indeed, to understand love from the heart, one need look no further than very basic physiology that most of us have likely experienced personally, and which the Greeks themselves likely based their own beliefs on. The state of excitement, a state definitely connected to both love and sexual attraction, is felt first and foremost in the heart. As the body prepares for something exciting, the heart rate increases to increase blood flow throughout the body. The racing of the heart, more than any thoughts that might cross through the brain, or rumbling in the stomach, is undoubtedly what has forever associated that organ as the organ of love.

What are Love Languages?

Dr. Gary Chapman, a Christian family counselor and author, has developed a relationship-building program called the 5 love languages. Love languages are defined as verbal and non-verbal communications between couples which improve the mental and physical well-being of both partners. These mutual expressions and actions help to build up a nurturing environment in which couples can improve both their emotional and physical intimacy levels.

The first of the five love languages includes words of affirmation. These words go far beyond a perfunctory "I love you" ritual, and include specific recognition of a partner's contributions to the relationship or the household or a career. The point of the exercise is to provide enough positive affirmation of a partner's self-worth to motivate that person towards even more personal growth. By telling a partner or friend or co-worker how much you appreciate his or her efforts, you are speaking in a language he or she can understand.

The second of the five love languages involves spending quality time with a loved one. This means setting aside a meaningful amount of personal time in which the friend or partner receives your complete and undivided attention. The idea is to have substantial conversations with another person, or take the time to indulge in a mutual interest, such as a movie or a hobby. Quality time can build up intimacy and trust in any relationship, romantic or otherwise.

Receiving gifts is the third component of Chapman's love languages. Almost everyone enjoys receiving personalized gifts from loved ones, and a surprise gift can be even more special. The ritual surrounding the presentation of a gift is often as satisfying as the gift itself. Some gifts are not necessarily tangible, but a spouse or friend can contribute a gift of time or a gift of their unique talents.

The fourth of the five love languages involves acts of service. A partner may volunteer to clean the house before the other partner returns home from work. A husband may decide to convert a garage into a craft room so his wife can pursue her interests and hobbies. The most important idea behind an act of services is that it must be unconditional and free of ulterior motives. A quid pro quo arrangement is not considered a true act of service.

The final element of the five love languages is physical touch. This is not limited to intimate touching of a romantic or sexual nature, but basic physical contact between two people. A back rub following a hard day at work would be an example of a positive expression of love language. A spouse may spontaneously scratch the other's back, or a father may give his son an affectionate pat on the shoulder after a good sports play. The point of physical touch is to satisfy the basic human need for close contact with others. People who feel isolated from others physically may begin to feel isolated on other levels as well.

Which Brain Chemicals Underlie the Experience of Romantic Love?

The primary chemical underlying romantic love is the neurotransmitter oxytocin. Oxytocin is released during orgasm for both sexes but also during childbirth or nipple stimulation for women. This helps along the biological functions of muscle contractions during birth or lactation for breastfeeding.

Experiments with prairie voles have shown that, when the gene for oxytocin is removed, this traditionally monogamous species loses its tendency for pair bonding completely. Scientists strongly speculate the same would happen for humans if oxytocin were blocked. Romantic love may be dependent on just a single brain chemical.

In males, vasopressin is also present, playing similar roles to oxytocin. It is thought that the period of oxytocin release is strongest in the first 18 months of romantic love, and trails off afterwards, though never vanishes completely. Sometimes oxytocin is whimsically called "the cuddle hormone".

Besides romantic love, oxytocin has also been implicated in social bonds and trust in general. Synthetic oxytocin is available and some scientists have suggested it could be a sort of "social Viagra," and indeed experiments have shown that people are more trusting while under the influence of nasally administered oxytocin. Because it is implicated in both trust and love, some scientists have cautioned it could be used as a date rape drug. Like other neurotransmitters, oxytocin may be regarded as a "natural drug" — a substance, when released in the brain, which causes us to act differently, but is commonly accepted in human society because it has been around for millions of years.

Oxytocin also causes females to exhibit more mother-like behavior. This has mainly been observed in rats, but it is suspected the psychochemical response is the same in humans. The difference between someone who is considered your "type" for romantic love and someone who isn't is probably that the presence of one person causes the release of oxytocin and one person doesn't. This is the neurochemical basis underlying romantic love.

Dopamine, the neurotransmitter underlying pleasure in general, also plays a part in romantic love, and is released from environmental triggers from a good conversation to a kiss on the lips.

Is love addictive?

Could Shakespeare have had the addictive nature of love in mind when he wrote Romeo and Juliet? It represents love addiction to the extreme. Two teens commit suicide because they assume they cannot live without each other. The idea of love being addictive, so that it results in irrational, unhappy behaviors of a variety of kinds, continues today. There are certainly mental health professionals and organizations like Love Addicts Anonymous that contend love, or rather certain types of relationship behavior, are addictive in nature.

Many psychotherapists suggest that people take a number of unresolved and unconscious issues from early childhood and remake their partners into who they want to see, or require partners to treat them in specific ways to reinforce unconscious ways of doing things. The degree to which deeply unconscious strategies for living were problematic might determine the extent of healthiness in adult relationships. Misguided, hurtful ideas about love may turn into troubled ways of viewing what a relationship must be, and this could be acted out by people many times over.

The love addict may be addicted to sex, to making sure a relationship is stormy and full of argument, to not being able to see that relationships with some people are always harmful, to doing everything for partners in the hopes they will retain them, or to abusive partners. Other love addicts fall in love with inaccessible people to avoid relationships or they might ruin every relationship when it gets to a certain point. All of this may spring from mistaken and probably unconscious ideas about how love is supposed to work and from acting out ways to disguise deep inadequacies, pain, and anger originating from childhood.

Some argue that the term, love, should not be used in this form of addiction. Love implies a mature relational stance with another person: both people are viewed as equal, expectations are for good and bad times, and the couple devotes time to growing and sharing in a relationship. This relationship is not everything in the world, but a part of each partner’s life. Love addicts do not share this mature view and though they may have attachment to partners, the relationship may be out of perspective and the person feels like there can be no life without it, much like Romeo and Juliet. The addict has a relationship that may be based in fear and other unconscious processes, instead of in love, but some people are able to address and amend this while retaining partners.

Methods for pursuing an end to addictive love are to participate in twelve-step or other groups devoted to love addiction or to pursue couples and/or individual therapy. Some people explore both paths, finding methods for uncovering motives that have harmed rather than helped relationships. When successful, such people may be love addicts no longer, but might instead be able to pursue true love relationships.

The Animal Series

The Emperor Penguin

Introduction

The Emperor Penguin, also known as Aptenodytes forsteri, is the largest of all penguins, birds that live in the Antarctic and are unable to fly. Emperor Penguins are distinguished from other penguins by its size, robust stature, and a yellow patch between its ear and upper breast. They eat mostly small marine animals and live in close contact in colonies. Typically they live for about 15 to 20 years. They have flipper-like wings for diving below 900 ft to catch abundant fish.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Sphenisciformes
Family: Shpeniscidae
Genus: Aptenodytes
Species: A. forsteri

Habitat

Emperor Penguins reside on Antarctic slabs of ice without land predators so that their inability to fly is not detrimental towards their survival. Because they have adapted to the sea and feeding on fish, they generally live close to cold, nutrient-rich water. They have a thick coat of blubber under the skin to keep them warm in temperatures that dive as low as -68 degrees F. They have several adaptions to this frigid weather including thick, scalelike feathers that are nearly impossible to ruffle. Also, their bill and flippers are very short, conserving heat. In order to conserve more heat, even their nasal chambers capture the heat that is usually released during exhalation, and they have lots of body fat.

Food Source/Food Chain

Emperor Penguins are able to reach ocean depths of over 800 feet and stay submerged for about 18 minutes. This allows them to take long pursuits for prey. They feed on some crustaceans but mostly fish and squid. They have to avoid their main enemy, the leopard seal. Other predators include the Antarctic giant petrels, orca, skua, and sharks.

Social Behavior
Emperor Penguins are very social birds. They live in groups or colonies, and often huddle to keep warm during the winter. Adult male penguins are usually on the move going from their nesting area to hunting and foraging in the ocean. Huddling is a very important feature to survival and social behaviors of emperors. They form a circle and take turns being on the inner (most warm) and outer (coldest) parts of the circle.

Interesting Characteristics

There are two main characteristics of Emperor Penguins that are very interesting and unusual. The first, and most obvious, is that they are birds that can't fly and instead, swim. The second and more intriguing feature of Emperor Penguins is their breeding pattern. They are the only penguins that breed in the frigid winter of Antarctica. After a 63 day gestation gestation period, the female lays one egg, which she passes to her male mate. He incubates the egg while the female leaves temporarily to feed. The male will not be able to eat during the 9 week incubation period during the harsh winter months of Antarctica. He keeps the egg warm by balancing it between his feet, insulated by a thick roll of skin and feathers called the "brood pouch". Also to keep warm, the male penguins huddle in close compact circles. After the egg hatches, the baby penguins remain in the brood pouch until able to regulate their own temperatures. The female then returns to nurse the newborn penguin, and the male, having lost a third of its body weight, goes on a 60 mile trip on the ice to find food.

The Animal Series

The Bear

Introduction

Brown bears are one of the largest bears seen in the wild. These bears can be seen in Northern Eurasia and also North America. In the U.S. there are about 32,500 brown bears and Alaska holds about 95% of them. This carnivorous animal can grow to enormous sizes and they can also be very aggressive if ever seen in the wild.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Ursidae
Genus: Ursus
Species: Ursus arctos

Physical Characteristics

Brown bears can have many coat colors like blonde, brown, black, or even a combination of these colors. Brown bears have short tails that range from 4 to 5 inches long. They have large powerful shoulders with massive forearms and paws. These paws can have claws that grow to 6 inches long. Brown bears are extremely powerful and can break the backbones of most of their prey. The male brown bear is usually about 40% larger than the female brown bear. These massive beast’s growth depends greatly on its available food. This species of bear can be anywhere from 220lbs – 1,500lbs in weight.

Habitat

The country with the most brown bears is Russia, holding about 120,000 of the 200,000 brown bears in the world. Some specific habitats that brown bears enjoy consist of wilderness areas with a river or stream, valley areas, mountain forests, and even meadows. Browns bears will usually stay in the same general area but in some cases they will travel up to 800 miles away in search for their most preferred habitat. Most all brown bears will end up in a wooded area with a small stream that holds many salmon.

Food Source

Brown bears are omnivorous, meaning they can eat both meat and plants. They do not depend on one or the other. Their food is usually determined by the season and habitat. Generally the plants that brown bears eat consist of grasses, roots, berries, and nuts. They will even consume insects, but their main source of protein would be meats including rodents, deer, elk, and moose. Browns bears will also feed on carcasses of larger dead animals.

Food Chain

Luckily the brown bear is generally at the top of the food chain. Adult bears have very little to fear when it comes to other predators. Young cubs on the other hand can be the prey of mountain loins, wolves, or even other larger bears. The primary threat to the brown bear is human.

Social Behaviors

Brown bears are mostly solitary but can sometimes gather in a group when a very large source of food is found. A male brown bear will usually find a mate and stay with that bear for a few days or even a couple weeks. Baby cubs are usually born into a litter of 1 – 4 cubs per litter. Once a bear grows up it will then find a mate and the cycle continues.

Interesting Facts

About 95% of the brown bears in the U.S. live in Alaska. The back legs of a bear are so strong that it can lift its entire weight and stand up on them like a human for several seconds. Although brown bears might seem slow and lethargic, they can sprint up to 30mph. They can live up to 25yrs in the wild. The largest recorded weight of a brown bear is 2,400lbs!

The Animal Series

Rhinoceros

Introduction

Classification
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Class Mammalia
Order Perissodactyla
Family Rhinocerotidae
Genus There are Four genus of Rhinoceroses. Diceros, Ceratotherium, Rhinoceros, and Dicerorhinus
Species Diceros Bicornis Black Rhinoceros
Ceratotherium Simun White Rhinoceros or the square-lipped Rhinoceros
Rhinoceros Unicornis Indian Rhinoceros also known as the Greater one-horned
Rhinoceros Sondaicus The Javan Rhinoceros
Dicerorhinus Sumatrenis The Sumatran Rhinoceros

Habitat

Rhinoceroses live in Africa or Asia depending on their species. The black and white rhinoceros live in souther and eastern Africa, while the Sumatran, Indian, and Javan live in Tropical Asia. The black, white, Indian, and Javan Rhinoceros live in savannas, marshes, and areas with a large amount of shrubs to eat. These rhinoceros prefer to live close to water holes which are shared between species. The water holes are important to the rhino, not only for drinking water, but to let them cover the skin in mud which protects them from the large amount of ticks. The Sumatran Rhinoceros are set apart from others because they live in the forests of Malaysia and Indonesia.

Food Source and Food Chain
All species of Rhinoceros are herbivores. They feed on twigs, fruit, leaves, shrubs, and grass. The black rhinoceros and Indian rhinoceros have lips capable of grasping like a finger. They use this to make gathering food easier.

Social Behaviors
Most Rhinoceros are not very social and usually live alone or in small groups that consist of the mother and her offspring, the exception is the White Rhinoceros which is more fond of company. Rhinoceroses communicate in growls, grunts, squeaks, snorts and bellows. The male rhinos are hostile towards one another using their horn to fight. They do this to protect their territory and to mate with females. The gestation period is 16 months long. Afterwords the rhinoceros nurses their calf for two years then continues to live with the mother for another year or two.

Interesting Characteristics
Rhinoceroses can weigh up to five tons and are five feet long.

The horn of a rhinoceros is not attached to the skull. It is composed of keratin fibers which makes up our fingernails and hair. Some people believe that the horn has medicinal uses, which caused the rhinoceros to be hunted. This is now illegal because all species of rhinoceros are endangered. Today there are under 25,000 rhinoceroses alive.
Rhinoceroses have very bad eyesight. They make up for this by having a strong sense of smell and very precise hearing. They can move their eyes to focus on certain sounds. Rhinoceros also have a symbiotic relationship with oxpeckers. These birds eat the ticks off the rhinoceros and warns the it of danger.

Source: National Geography

The Animal Series

Rockhopper Penguin

Introduction

The Rockhopper Penguins are part of the order Sphenisciformes. This specific type of bird is incapable of flying. It uses its powerful wings as flippers, for swimming. These carnivorous animals are known to be the most aggressive of all penguins. Right now, they are being protected so that the species does not become extinct.

Classification
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Aves
Order Sphenisciformes
Family Spheniscidae

Habitat

The Rockhopper Penguins are located in the southern hemisphere on several islands, such as the Falkand, Macquarie, and Amsterdam Islands. The Falkand Islands used to be the world’s largest Rockhopper Penguin breeding site, with 2,500,000 pairs. These penguins are found in nests and burrows among high grasses and tussocks. Additionally, they live along rocky shorelines.

Feeding/ Food Chain

Rockhopper Penguins, being carnivores, use their orange-red beak to feed on krill, squid, small fish and crustaceans such as shrimp.
These penguins are prey to leopard seals, fur seals, sea lions, and blue sharks. Skuas, Petrels, and Kelp Seagulls prey on the eggs and chicks of Rockhopper penguins.

Social Behaviors
As their name suggests, Rockhopper penguins do not slide on their bellies to get around swiftly like other penguins. Instead, they jump from boulder to boulder on cliffs and along the shoreline in order to avoid obstacles. They communicate a lot, through noises known as ecstatic vocalizations. They are very noisy and often just make sounds to announce their presence and mark their territory. They also bow and wave their flippers to each other.

Often times, the penguins are in groups with other penguins, even when feeding. Although very social, the small Rockhopper penguins are also known to be easily agitated and the most aggressive of the birds. They are not intimidated by larger animals and can fight with their flippers, as well as their beaks. Despite their reputation, Rockhopper penguins are in fact very gentle with their mates.

During mating season, between early spring and late summer, penguins attract their mate from previous years with mating calls and headshakes. The large breeding colonies can grow to hold up to 100,000 nests at one single site. These penguins form a nest by scraping hole in the ground and lining it with dried grasses. Of the two pale-green eggs laid, the first one is smaller and therefore more vulnerable than the second, born 4 days later. After birth, Rockhoppers spend much of their time in the water. They find food and even sleep at sea during their 10 years of life.

Physical Characteristics

Rockhopper penguins are not the typical black and white bird that the word "penguin" is normally related to. They are a part of the family of crested penguins because of the distinctive yellow stripe and crest on the sides of their head above their small red eyes. They are white on the ventral side and blue-black colored on the dorsal side to blend in for protection when floating so that the light hits one side and predators only see the dark, back side. In addition to their feathers that keep out wind and water, they have adapted to the cold environment with both a layer of fat and down.

Their wings are used as fins for swimming, not flying. Their wedge-shaped tails and webbed feet, help them to swim very quickly. Rockhopper penguins loops in and out of the water, a form of swimming called porpoising. As the smallest of the crested penguins and one of the smallest penguins in the world, they may reach up to 55 cm with a weight of 2.7 kg.

Interesting Characteristics

There has been a rapid and substantial decline in population of theses penguins due to commercial fishing that has decreased their food source. They were once hunted for oil, but now all species are protected so that they don't become endangered or even extinct. Climate changes that altered their living environment may have also affected their population. One study by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds found that the amount of the Northern Rockhopper penguin specifically, has declined by 90% over the past 50 years. This species of penguin is now labeled “Vulnerable” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, but not quite endangered yet.

Source: National Geography

The Animal Series

Red Panda

Introduction

People may say that red pandas are related to giant pandas, but they are not. They are also not related to raccoons. The herbivorous mammals belong to their own family, Ailuridae. The endangered mammals live in the mountainous forests of Nepal, Burma, and central China. They are mostly arboreal and solitary.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Ailuridae
Genus: Ailurus
Species: fulgens

Because red pandas are classified as relatives to the giant panda and raccoon, they are considered members of their own family, Aliuridae.

Physical Characteristics
Full-grown red pandas are about 43 cm long and weight from 12-20 lbs. They are covered in red fur with white markings around the face and have a black belly. They also have white/brown rings on their bushy tail. Their markings help them blend in to their habitat. They are covered in soft, dense fur from their head to their feet. They use their tails to balance in the trees and to cover themselves in the winter.

Habitat

Red pandas live in the high-altitude, temperate climates in deciduous and coniferous forests. They live in Myanmar (Burma) and Sichuan and Yunnan providences in China. Red pandas are found in between 2,200 and 4,800 meters elevation in the Himalayan mountains. To blend in with the red mosses and white lichens that grow where they live, they cover themselves with their red and white tails. They spend most of their days in the trees and only go to the ground to forage during dusk or dawn.

Food Source/Food Chain

Red pandas are herbivores. They eat bamboo leaves, berries, blossoms, bird eggs, and other plants’ leaves. Because they have broad teeth and strong jaws, red pandas are able to chew the bamboo’s though leaves and stalks. Having a small, bony projection (like a thumb) on their wrists helps them obtain bamboo by allowing them to grip onto the bamboo stalks. They insert food into the side of their mouth, break it, chew it, and the swallow it.

They are in the middle of the food chain. Red pandas eat small animals, insects, and plants, while they are prey to raptors and large carnivores. Snow leopards are adults main predators and the young are often taken from their nest by yellow-necked martens.

Social Behavior

Red pandas are shy and solitary. The only time when they are not solitary is during mating season and when the young is with their mother. They are also crepuscular (active around dawn and dusk) and nocturnal. Red pandas are gentle and curious, but when they are frightened, they stand on their back legs, hiss, climb up a tree or strike with their semi-retractable claws. They mark their territory with scents from their anal gland, urine, or feces. Their trails are also marked with scents from the glands on the soles of their feet. Red pandas communicate with each other in a series of whistles and squeaks.

Red pandas produce sexually. They give birth around spring and summer time after their gestation of 134 days. Red pandas usually have one to four offspring. The young then stay in their nest for ninety days while the mother takes care of them. Young red pandas reach adult size at twelve months, or one year.

Interesting Characteristics

The Red Panda’s name comes from the Nepalese Word “eater of bamboo” and the fact that they are a bright red color. The males sometimes are called a boar or a he-bear, and the female is called the sow or she-bear. A group of panda’s is called a sleuth or sloth.The red panda was introduced to Europe in 1821 and then added to western science list in 1825. This is remarkable because it was introduced 40 years before the giant panda was scientifically written down.
The red panda has a life span of about 13 years.
The red panda's have some very interesting defense mechanisms. The most interesting of their characteristics is when they are disturbed they exhale, and then the panda arches their bodies to frighten off intruders. The Female panda can eat up to 200,000 bamboo leaves a day.
The red panda is currently endangered due to habitat loss. In 1998, 2,500 adult red in the wild and the number has been growing by the year.
Other names for the red panda: bear-cat, bright panda, cat-bear, fire fox, lesser panda, petite panda, or poonya.
Red Panda's connection with other carnivorous animals is uncertain.
Red Pandas have partially retractable claws.
They have a thumb like attachment that helps them obtain food.

Source: National Geography